Merrington, Durham Genealogy: Difference between revisions

Revision as of 15:35, 22 July 2013

Kirk Merrington St John Co Durham.jpg

Parish History[edit | edit source]

MERRINGTON (St. John the Evangelist), a parish, in the unions of Auckland, Durham, and Sedgefield, S. E. division of Darlington ward, S. division of the county of Durham.^[1]

St John the Evangelist church Kirk Merrington was rebuilt in 1851 on the site of the ancient parish church. The parish is a peculiar belonging to the dean and Chapter of Durham Cathedral; the parish includes Chilton, Hett and Middlestone.

Resources[edit | edit source]

Civil Registration[edit | edit source]

Birth, marriages and deaths were kept by the government, from July 1837 to the present day. The civil registration article tells more about these records. There are several Internet sites with name lists or indexes. A popular site is FreeBMD.

Church records[edit | edit source]

To find the names of the neighbouring parishes, use England Jurisdictions 1851. In this site, search for the name of the parish, click on the location "pin", click Options and click List contiguous parishes.

Durham University Library Archives and Special Collections DDR/EA/PBT/ 2/158 1762-1884 Parish Register transcripts are available to search free online at FamilySearch Historical Records.

The dates of the post-1760 transcripts have been noted in detail and sometimes only cover years. For most parishes in the collection there are gaps in the sequence of transcripts. It is advisable to consult the original parish registers for these years and events.

The Parish Registers for the period 1579-1967 are deposited at Durham County Record Office, County Hall, Durham, DH1 5UL (EP/Mer).

Non Conformist Churches[edit | edit source]

Census records[edit | edit source]

Census records from 1841 to 1911 are available online. For access, see England Census Records and Indexes Online. Census records from 1841 to 1891 are also available on film through a FamilySearch Center or at the FamilySearch Library.

Poor Law Unions[edit | edit source]

Auckland Poor Law Union, Durham

Probate records[edit | edit source]

Records of wills, administrations, inventories, indexes, etc. were filed by the court with jurisdiction over this parish. Go to Durham Probate Records to find the name of the court having primary jurisdiction. Scroll down in the article to the section Court Jurisdictions by Parish.

Maps and Gazetteers[edit | edit source]

Maps are a visual look at the locations in England. Gazetteers contain brief summaries about a place.

Web sites[edit | edit source]

References[edit | edit source]

↑ Lewis, Samuel A., A Topographical Dictionary of England (1848), pp. 291-295. Date accessed: 25 March 2011.

Contributor: add any relevant sites that aren’t mentioned above.

[1] Lewis, Samuel A., A Topographical Dictionary of England (1848), pp. 291-295. Date accessed: 25 March 2011.

[1]

@@ Line 1: / Line 1: @@
 [[England]] [[Image:Gotoarrow.png]] [[Durham]] [[Image:Gotoarrow.png]] [[Durham Parishes]]
-[[Image:Kirk Merrington St John Co Durham.jpg|thumb|right]]
+[[Image:Kirk Merrington St John Co Durham.jpg|thumb|right|Kirk Merrington St John Co Durham.jpg]]
 == Parish History  ==
@@ Line 11: / Line 11: @@
 <br>
-In 1870-72, John Marius Wilson's Imperial Gazetteer of England and Wales described Merrington like this:
-MERRINGTON, a village and a township in Auckland district, and a parish partly also in Durham and Stockton districts, Durhamshire. The village strands on an eminence, 1½ mile SSE of Spennymoor r. station, and 3¾ ENE of Bishop-Auckland; adjoins the ground on which the English forces encamped before the battle of Neville's Cross; commands a very extensive view, along the valley of the Wear, and to the hills of Yorkshire; is a large place; and has a post office, of the name of '''Kirk-Merrington''', under Darlington. The township comprises 1,934 acres. Real property, £3,331; of which £275 are in mines. Pop. in 1851,504; in 1861,926. Houses, 160.—The parish contains also the townships of Ferryhill, Chilton, and Hett. Acres, 8,024. Rea l property, £12,165; of which £4,172 are in mines, and £17 in quarries. Pop. in 1851,2,673; in 1861, 4,046. Houses, 767 The property is much subdivided. Coal is worked. The living is a vicarage in the diocese of Durham. Value, £300.* Patrons, the Dean and Chapter of Durham. The old church was Norman, and of interesting character; and was the scene, in 1144, of a furious fray between W. Comyn, who had usurped the bishopric of Durham, and three barons of the bishopricpalatinate. The present church was built in 1854, on the site of the old one and in imitation of it; is of oblong form, with a massive central tower 60 feet high; and retains the chancel-screen of the old church. The churchyard contains an incised coffin-shaped stone, said to mark the grave of Hodge of Ferry, who slew the famous Brawn. The vicarage of Ferryhill is a separate benefice. There are a national school, and charities £19.<br><br>
 == Resources  ==